The Monthly e-News Brief of NMF Volume 3, Number 12 Dec 2008 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Inside this brief …… • Gujarat Ports to Get Electric Fencing With Breach Alarms • Major Ports to Get Commando Units • Pakistan has Much-Enhanced Maritime Prowess • Nhava Sheva Becomes India's First Security Certified Terminal • Sluggish Markets Hit Shipbuilding Firms’ Fund-Raising Plans • Shipbuilding to be Part of Canada's Economic Stimulus . • 50% Of Fishing Vessels on Western Coast Unregistered • As the World Economy Sinks, So Does Global Shipping • Pirates Menace: India for More International Cooperation • Indian Maritime Forces Rebuff Criticism in Wake of Mumbai Attack • Navy, Coast Guard Start Patrolling High Seas • UN Security Council Extends Anti-Piracy Measures Off Somali Coast • Complete Overhaul of Coastal Security Set Up Needed • Indian Navy 'Captures 23 Pirates' Off Somalia Coast • China Set to Launch Naval Mission in Gulf of Aden • Govt Plans Low Cost Satellite to Watch India's Coastline Guj Ports to Get Electric Fencing With Breach Alarms Ports in Gujarat are all set to get electric fencing with breach alarms as a part of the security measures undertaken by the Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB). This was decided at a recent meeting of the GMB in Gandhinagar with the Intelligence and the Navy. Captain S C Mathur, the Chief Nautical Officer of Gujarat Maritime Board, said: “For commercial ports such as Dahej, we will install electric barbwires with breach alarms. Any breach will be simultaneously notified at the Port Officer’s office and the nearest police station and a signal would be sent out to the walkie-talkie sets of the policemen and the port security members.” Mathur said, to counter the threat from the sea, joint patrolling is being carried out by the Navy and the Coast Guard. Besides, the Superintendents of Police of the coastal districts have been asked to coordinate with the Navy and the Coast Guards to man the 1,600 km long coastline, he said. GMB officials said strict procedures would be applied for the registration of fishing vessels in the smaller ports of the state. “Although we register only trawlers and ships, we will also monitor the smaller boats in the state,” said Mathur. He also debunked rumours that a lot of unscrupulous elements have entered the fishing industry lately. “They are checked by the Customs, the Fisheries Department and the local police and they have to get no-objection certificate from these departments before they can get registered with the Gujarat Maritime Board,” added Mathur. Source(s): Anupam Chakravartty, The Indian Express, Dec 02, 2008 http://www.indianexpress.com/news/Guj-ports-to-get-electric-fencing-with-breach-alarms/393055/ Major Ports to Get Commando Units Major ports in the country will soon have their own elite marine commando units on the lines of the National Security Guard, as part of their initiative to beef up security in the wake of November terrorist attacks on Mumbai. That the terrorists had landed in Mumbai by sea has all the more prompted the Shipping Ministry to lay out an elaborate plan to upgrade security levels in the ports. The Minister for Shipping and Surface Transport, Mr T.R. Baalu, had called a meeting in New Delhi with the chairmen of ports to review the security arrangements. Sources said some of the major ports will have at least 60 commandos, equipped with modern security equipment. The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), which is in charge of security at the major ports, will train its men to be commandos. The elite team, which will be trained by the marine commandos of the Navy and the NSG, will be engaged only in the protection of the ports, the sources said. Further, ports have been asked to work closely with the local fishermen community and have frequent communication and dialogue with them on security-related issues. After the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT), the Chennai Port Trust in May this year was the second major port to insure its assets, estimated at Rs 990 crore, against risks such as earthquake, tsunami, cyclone and even terrorist attacks. “The insurance cover is very crucial for ports after the Mumbai attacks,” said a Chennai port official. “We are going ahead with setting up a commando unit. The port will be bearing the expenses of setting up the unit,” Mr S.S. Hussain, Chairman of the port. Source(s): Seafarer, Dec 3, 2008. http://seafarerblog.com/2008/12/03/major-ports-to-get-commando-units.html . Pakistan Now has Much-Enhanced Maritime Prowess Over the years Islamabad has enhanced its naval prowess by overwhelming acquisition of fleet from UK, France, China and the US. According to a detailed report “Force level Acquisition Plans for Pak Navy up to 2010”, something available with the Indian agencies now, the Pakistan government has already ear-marked specific budget for the acquisition. These include at least 6-8 submarines, 10 Frigates, Fast Attack Craft (Missiles) - 8, Fast Attack Craft (Guns) - 8, survey ships - 3, Midgets - 4 and Auxiliary - 5. These procurements are slated to be made at an estimated cost of nearly 250 billion Pakistani rupees from 2002 to 2010. Source(s): Naval Open Source INTelligence, Dec 04, 2008 http://nosint.blogspot.com/2008/12/pakistan-now-has-much-enhanced-maritime.html 2 Nhava Sheva Becomes India's First Security Certified Terminal Global marine terminal operator DP World's Nhava Sheva International Container Terminal(NSICT) in India, has become the country's first to achieve ISO 28000:2007 certification in supply chain security management systems. With the certification announced on Dec 25, the terminal also known as DP World Nhava Sheva became the 15th among the giant operator's network of 48 terminals worldwide, to get the distinction. The Certification, undertaken by independent Rotterdam-based Dutch auditing firm and Maritime Classification Society of excellence Det Norske Veritas(DNV), validates the NSICT's mechanisms and processes to address security vulnerabilities at strategic and operational levels, as well as its preparedness for preventive action plans. The Nava Sheva terminal, which boast of state- of-the art infrastructure and world class services, is already certified for ISO 9001, ISO 14001, OHSAS 18001 and ISO 27001 management systems. The terminal, was granted the certification after a thorough security audit of the facility, focused principally on container security, physical access controls, personnel security, procedural security, security training and threat awareness, business partner requirements and IT Security. Its investment in the ISO security management system has been recognised by the US Customs Border Protection agency, which invited DP World to join its Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) programme Source(s): The Economic Times, Dec 26, 2008. http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News_By_Industry/Transportation/Shipping__Transport/Nhava_Sheva_becomes_I ndias_first_security_certified_terminal_/articleshow/3893691.cms Sluggish Markets Hit Shipbuilding Firms’ Fund-Raising Plans Two of India’s top shipbuilding companies, as well as a third that is constructing a new facility, may have to defer plans to raise money from the public to fund their projects due to sluggish market conditions. Local firms had outlined plans to invest close to Rs20,000 cr over the next three-five years. “Nobody wants to touch the IPO (initial public offering) market now. It is for everyone to see,” said Bhavesh Gandhi, Vice-Chairman of Pipavav Shipyard Ltd, the country’s newest shipbuilder that began constructing the first of a series of 26 ships worth Rs4,300 crore for French, Greek and Norwegian fleet owners early this year. Larsen and Toubro Ltd (L&T), the country’s biggest engineering firm, has scaled down its earlier plan of setting up a Rs3,000 crore mega shipyard at Kattupalli in Tamil Nadu on the country’s eastern coast. The firm will now be investing only Rs1,800 crore to erect the yard with a capacity to build 12 ships in a year compared with 60 earlier. Cochin Shipyard had recently received approval from the Union government to set up a small shipbuilding division with an investment of Rs98 crore. The company had also floated plans to build a second dry dock to construct bigger ships. A dry dock is a narrow basin that can be flooded to allow a ship to be floated in, then drained to allow that ship to come to rest on a dry platform. Dry docks are used for the construction, maintenance and repair of ships and typically cost around Rs800-1,000 crore. The country’s shipbuilding capacity is projected to reach 4 million tonnes (mt) (cargo carrying capacity) by 2012 from the present 2.8mt and rise further to 19mt by 2017, aided mainly by cost competitiveness and availability of skilled and cheap labour, according to a recent industry-funded report prepared by KPMG Advisory Services Pvt. Ltd. At this stage, India will have a 7.5% share of the global market, up from less than 1% now, said the report, which was submitted to the government. Local firms had outlined plans to invest close to Rs20,000 crore over the next three-five years to build new facilities and tap the potential that prevailed till early this year when shipping and global trade were at their peak. But the global credit crunch, the deteriorating economies in the West and the downturn in global shipping have put the brakes on the ship acquisition plans of global fleet owners, forcing local shipbuilding firms to trim their plans. Source(s): P. Manoj , Live Mint, Dec 03, 2008.: http://www.livemint.com/2008/11/30230611/Sluggish-markets-hit-shipbuild.html Shipbuilding to be Part of Canada's Economic Stimulus. The Canadian Government is planning to hold a "shipbuilding summit" early in the new year.